Health is always on the forefront of many minds. Unfortunately, in this high technology society efficiency generally dictates how well we maintain our health. Although it is commonly known that diet and exercise are key aspects of maintaining good health, time and money often times supersede our desire to maintain a proper health regimen.
Poor diet and inadequate exercise lead to an uncomfortable lifestyle. Many people are plagued by back pains, in particular, lower back pain. Back pains can be the source of many other discomforts causing problems in walking, sitting, and sleeping. Often times the back pain is due to poor posture, lack of exercise, and lack of stretching causing the back to become stiff and inducing uncomfortable or painful spasms. Stiffness and spasms contribute to the restricted movement of an individual suffering from back pain.
Current exercise devices require lifting of heavy weights while standing or sitting, thereby applying an axial load on the spine and exacerbating bad backs. This can be an additional source of pain. A few devices allow the user to perform middle to lower body exercises in a kneeling position to minimize the axial load; however, these devices are limited in the targeted muscles groups that can be exercised and in the intensity of the exercise. Other exercise devices allow users to conduct exercises in an inclined position; however, these devices are cumbersome, require numerous components, including pulleys and cables, and take up a lot of space. Thus, these devices are inadequate and inefficient.
Therefore, there is still a need for a compact exercise device with minimal components that can allow a user to perform a multitude of exercises while minimizing the axial load on the spine and while being able to increase the intensity of the exercise.